Auto marketingruns throughthree tiers.
Automotive marketing runs through tiers: national, regional dealer associations and individual dealers, each with its own agencies, co-op money and digital vendors. We follow the money through every tier.
Where it goes wrong.
Each tier optimizes its own budget. The manufacturer funds co-op, associations hire agencies, and dealers buy their own leads, websites and software. The same customer is paid for several times.
Dealer groups that consolidate stores inherit every one of those contracts.
Association agency fees
Regional advertising associations with agency contracts few members have read.
Co-op and reimbursement
Co-op claims, eligibility rules and unclaimed funds.
Lead and digital retail vendors
Third-party leads, websites and chat tools priced per store.
Media supply chain
Programmatic and CTV fees between the budget and the impression.
Dealer software
Dealer management, CRM and add-on modules on long terms.
Call tracking and BDC
Duplicate call handling and tracking across stores.
How we help
The same approach as every engagement: a free call, a Second Opinion or a Diagnostic to size it, then the work run to the P&L.
Tier 2 dealer ad associations: who controls the money
Tier 2 dealer associations spend dealer money through agencies that often also serve the manufacturer. Here is what a board should demand in the contract.
Dealer group software after acquisitions: DMS, CRM and leads
Every acquired rooftop brings a DMS contract, a CRM, lead providers and call tracking. How DMS terms and data access fees drive the cost, and what to fix at close.
The audit most dealer networks never run
Co-op dollars and dealer technology contracts sit in different departments and rarely get audited together. That split is where the money hides.
Straight answers.
Do you work with dealer groups or manufacturers?
Both, plus regional dealer associations. The work changes by tier, and the biggest gains usually come from looking across them.
Can you audit an association’s agency?
Yes, on behalf of the association board, working from the contract, invoices and media data.
Tell us about the business.
Fifteen minutes. We will tell you where we would look first in a business like yours.